"R.C. Payne" wrote in message
...
Bill Kambic wrote:
On Mon, 1 Oct 2007 18:51:14 -0500, "TMOliver"
wrote:

The awful truth....

Them dannable Tscherman N*zis and the Hirohito's aggressive pursuit of the
East Asian Coprosperity Sphere sealed the doom of the flying boat and sea
plane by causing we Merkins to pave or at worst lay steel mat over the
majority of the Western World's (and some Eastern's too) long flat places.
When there were runways everywhere, planes that floated were relegated to
niche market status, quaint curiosites in the midst of a dynamic world.

Yup, what he said.

Floatplanes are romantic as all get out, but lack economic
practicality.

Maybe someday somebody will figure out how to make money on them the
way some folks make big cruise ships pay. Until then they are just a
chapter in Naval Aviation (and aviation) history.

I know it's a niche market, but there are at least two companies flying
otter and twin otter float planes between Victoria and Vancouver in BC (as
well as a few other destinations in the area). The geography of those two
cities is such that the seaplanes can provide a downtown - downtown service
with a short journey time, indeed in less time than it would take to drive
to the airport. They seem to cope quite well with the other traffic in the
harbours.

I chartered one of their Twin Otters to take the Standing Committee on
Fisheries and Oceans to look at the situation of salmon farms in the Broughton
Archipelago back in 2002. It was a bit like being on a date with the family
car because we had to return in time for the a/c to fuel before its evening
commuter run. Great flight, though -- we were about 1,000 feet all the way up
and down the Island, and we could see the white-sided dolphins rolling to take
a look at us as we dropped down.
--
Andrew Chaplin
SIT MIHI GLADIUS SICUT SANCTO MARTINO
(If you're going to e-mail me, you'll have to get "yourfinger." out.)